Necessary forms are available below; you can print and complete these at home to save time. Other forms are required later and dates are noted on each. Several weeks after you have enrolled your child, you will receive an email from D39 with an ID and password to complete the online registration.

When enrolling, you will specify a preference for morning or afternoon kindergarten. A lottery will be held in January and there may be limited availability to honor preferences. Please know that we do everything possible to accommodate your request.

Each school will hold a Kindergarten Orientation session for parents on April 17th at 6:30 pm. Please plan to attend this informative event. The evening is intended for adults only.

Kindergarten Enrollment Forms

Forms required for enrollment in January:

Child's original birth certificate

Two original documents that provide proof of residency (details on the Affirmation of Residency Form)

Half-Day Program
District 39 provides a half-day kindergarten program for students. Students attend one of the District's four neighborhood elementary schools for either morning (8:35 – 11:10) or afternoon (12:40 – 3:15). Contact your local school to begin the process of enrolling a kindergartener. To find your local District 39 Elementary School, use the School Locator service.

Within the half-day, District 39 kindergarten teachers successfully deliver a rich and appropriately challenging curriculum. Children receive instruction in core areas of math, English language arts, social studies, and science. Additionally, there is Spanish instruction twice each week and music, physical education, and library weekly. At the end of the kindergarten year, students are very well prepared for the first grade curriculum.

Many parents inquire about a longer day for kindergarteners, and this option has been explored in D39 for the last several years. In concept, there are two ways to provide for a longer day:

Kindergarten Enrichment – optional fee-based extension of the day; curriculum is covered for half the day and the fee-based optional extended time is used for non-curricular activities.

Full-Day Kindergarten – students attend a full school day like other students and specified curriculum is spread throughout the day.

While there are many fee-based full-day options available in Wilmette, the District understands that parents would prefer students remain in their home school. However, space and cost issues must be addressed.

The biggest concern in District 39 is lack of space. With current enrollments, there is not sufficient space in the four elementary buildings to incorporate an extension to the kindergarten day.

As a public school district, capital expenditures are carefully evaluated and priorities set to pursue those projects that will positively impact the greatest number of students. To date, other construction priorities have been set by the Board.

Fortunately, there are several good enrichment options locally for parents who wish to extend their child's kindergarten day; many D39 students go to kindergarten enrichment at the park district or other private providers. At this time, the District cannot provide this without incurring significant costs.

As enrollments and capital needs are reviewed, the District will reconsider kindergarten options.